Jaco Surf Beach, Costa Rica

byDave Jackson

Jaco Costa Rica is located in North Puntarenas and beckons travelers looking for an exotic beach locale each year. From beach bums on a budget to jet-setters keeping up with the Joneses, there are several affordable properties in Jaco Costa Rica available to meet your needs. Jaco Costa Rica is the closest beach to the capitol only 2 hours away on a paved road through lush mountains. Backpackers, surfers, single travelers and party crowds come to Jaco Costa Rica to enjoy the exciting things it has to offer. Jaco’s close proximity to the airport and the central valley (where the capital city is located and most of the population live) has made it a popular beach destination for Costa Rican and international tourists. Jaco’s central location makes it an ideal home base for travelers that want to live and explore up and down the Pacific coast.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Cq1IgUVOq8

Jaco Beach, the county seat, is the closest beach town to San Jose, and a popular vacation destination for nationals and foreigners as well as a perfect base point from which to operate. Most major attractions are within a few minutes to four hours drive. A laidback bustling town, Jaco is one of the most popular Costa Rican beaches. Located in the North of the Puntarenas province along the country’s central Pacific Coast less than 2 hours from San Jose , Jaco has the reputation of being a party beach with an excellent nightlife. The beach stretches nearly two miles and is known for strong riptides, so be careful swimming there! Visitors seeking exciting nightlife won’t be disappointed as Jaco attracts a young crowd that fills the bars and casinos each night.

It’s a great location at the south end of the beach, which is definitely the calmest and prettiest section, and only a $2.00 cab ride into town. The staff is superb; very friendly and knowledgeable and nice enough to loan us two bikes for our entire stay. The beach is a 2.5 mile (4 km) strip which offers world renowned surfing and more. Much like Costa Rica’s metropolitan areas, Jaco offers most services, such as a post office, health center and branches of major banks.

In Jaco Beach one won’t find the remoteness that many people search for in Costa Rica. As you can see in the map, Jaco is North of Playa Hermosa, a very popular beach among surfers who not only like the constant waves of Jaco Beach, but wish to experience larger swells. Along the way you can also go visit the beaches of Punta Leona, both of which have been awarded the Blue Ecological Flag.

In fact, a new highway system connecting the airport right to the Jaco Beach area (scheduled to be completed in 2009) is expected to facilitate the tourism and steadily growing population. Not only does Costa Rica trade bananas, coffee, sugar and cocoa with the US, but they also trade citizens. You’ll find everything you need – restaurants, grocery stores, calling & Internet centers, drugstores, bicycle shops and more – within walking distance.

Combining gorgeous beaches with dense lush rainforests, exotic animal and bird species and exquisite coral reefs, the Manual Antonio National Park lies in the lovely Puntarenas province along Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast. Easily accessible by bus or car from the capital city of San Jose, which lies only 140 km southwest of here, this park is also easy to get to from Jaco, which sits just 69 km to the south.